Double-faced regimes in U turn: China says to help with reconstruction of Syria

China says it will help with reconstruction efforts in Syria, which has seen massive destruction as a result of over six and a half years of armed conflict.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told a visiting senior aide to Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad on Friday that dialog was important in resolving the conflict and that the world must support the reconstruction of the Arab country.

“The international community should emphasize and actively support Syria’s reconstruction. China will put forth its own effort for this,” Wang told Bouthaina Shaaban, according to a statement by China’s Foreign Ministry.

According to the statement, Shaaban welcomed China playing a greater role in the political process to resolve the Syrian conflict.

Two parallel peace processes have been going on for Syria, one in the Kazakh capital of Astana and the other in the Swiss city of Geneva. The Astana peace process has been launched by Iran, Russia, and Turkey, and the Geneva talks are held on the auspices of the United Nations (UN).

On Wednesday, the presidents of Iran, Russia, and Turkey invited all countries to contribute to peace in the Middle East region, including in Syria, and help with the reconstruction of Syria and the return of Syrian refugees to their homes.

Syria has been fighting different foreign-sponsored militant and terrorist groups since March 2011.

At Damascus’ request, Iran has been providing military advisory support to the Syrian military in its counterterrorism operations.

Russia has been carrying out an aerial campaign in Syria also on a request from the Syrian government since September 2015.